Honeypreet’s arrest triggers Haryana, Punjab verbal duel

Chandigarh: A blame game erupted between the chief ministers of Haryana and Punjab on Thursday over the arrest of Honeypreet Insan who claims to be the adopted daughter of the jailed Dera Sacha Sauda chief.

While Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar accused the Punjab police of not sharing information with its Haryana counterpart ahead of her arrest on October 3, Punjab CM Amarinder Singh alleged that the allegations were an attempt to shift attention from the situation in Haryana.

“The Punjab police should have informed the Haryana police about Honeypreet’s whereabouts earlier. Something smells fishy,” Mr Khattar told reporters on Thursday.

He was responding to questions about Honeypreet appearing before some media channels hours ahead of her arrest.

“This (delay in her arrest) has happened due to the Punjab police. How much the Punjab police helped (her) and how much was in their knowledge...If it was in their knowledge they should have passed information to the Haryana police and handed her over to them,” he claimed.

After Honeypreet’s interrogation, many things would come out in the open, he said adding that innocent people would be punished and guilty would not be spared.

On being asked whether any political leader was involved in shielding Honeypreet, he said that it was not appropriate to comment on the issue as the interrogation was underway.

Meanwhile, Aamrinder Singh lambasted Mr Khattar for raising questions about the role of the Punjab police in the case.

Mr Singh asked Mr Khattar to refrain from such alleged fabrications to “shield his own government’s failure” in the Dera Sacha Sauda case.

He alleged that after trying “unsuccessfully to pin the blame for the Panchkula violence on the Punjab government”, Khattar was once again trying to divert public attention from the collapse of the law and order in Haryana since the rape conviction of Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.